Rays shortstop Wander Franco resumed his rehab assignment yesterday, slotting in as the designated hitter for the Triple-A Durham Bulls as he attempts to return from July hamate surgery. The plan, as relayed by Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, is for Franco to stick with the Bulls for a few more games and rejoin the Rays for their series against the Blue Jays on September 12.
Of course, this is contingent on Franco feeling well in the coming days. He attempted to begin a rehab assignment a few weeks ago but was pulled off due to continued soreness in his hand. It seems like he’s in a better position this time around, however. “This is definitely the best I’ve felt since the injury,” Franco tells Topkin, via interpreter Manny Navarro. “That’s probably the most important thing, if he feels good where he’s at, where we’re at,” manager Kevin Cash said.
Getting Franco back for the final few weeks of the regular season would certainly be a boon for the Rays. They are currently five games back of the Yankees in the battle for the AL East crown and sandwiched between the Mariners and Blue Jays in the Wild Card picture. The club also put second baseman Brandon Lowe on the IL last week, which further subtracted from their infield depth.
Other injury notes from around the league…
- Astros righty Justin Verlander went on the IL a week ago due to a calf injury, with both Verlander and general manager James Click expressing optimism that a significant absence wouldn’t be necessary. However, Verlander probably won’t return after the 15-day minimum, Click tells Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. The Astros are fortunate enough to be sitting on a record of 86-48, six games ahead of the Yankees for the best record in the American League and 17 games ahead of the Central-leading Guardians/Twins. That means the club is cruising to a first round bye and can allow Verlander to return at whatever pace is best for his health, as opposed to rushing him back for meaningful games down the stretch. Prior to the injury, the 39-year-old was having an incredible season, especially when considering he effectively missed the previous two years. He’s thrown 152 innings in 2022 with a 1.84 ERA, 26.5% strikeout rate and 4.5% walk rate. By surpassing the 130-inning mark, he has vested a $25MM player option for next year, but would likely be able to do better than that on the open market if he declined the option.
- The Nationals placed right-hander Victor Arano on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to September 2, due to a right shoulder strain. The club hasn’t released any information about Arano’s timeline, but with only about four weeks left on the schedule, it’s possible that this ailment will end his season. He’s thrown 42 innings so far this year, his first MLB action since 2019. He has a 4.50 ERA, 23.5% strikeout rate, 6.4% walk rate and 51.6% ground ball rate. A 58.9% strand rate is probably inflating that ERA, with advanced metrics like FIP (3.71), xFIP (3.45) and SIERA (3.12) thinking he deserved much better. The 27-year-old will cross three years of MLB service time by season’s end, meaning he will qualify for arbitration for the first time.
Verlander needs 10 more innings to qualify for the ERA crown. Hopefully the Astros get him back on the field soon enough to do that.
Arano is a solid arm in my opinion. Washington should build him up and maybe sell him at his peak next summer
Considering all the injuries to the Rays’ IF, the Isaac Paredes trade has been perhaps the best trade by any team this year.
@garry. Initially the Meadows/Paredes trade had me perplexed. But the Rays have shown once again not to trade with them
NY Yankees have injure personas available to add to the list,,MLBtr look short today
Verlander stuck at home with Kate Upton. Sucks to be him.
Good they can take more naked bathroom selfies together
Verlander should be fine.
Justin. Speedy recovery. Injuries are not to be taken lightly of course.
But, ohhh, that cynical side of me, that judgemental side of me, the not cool part if me.
Calf injury. Really? Rare, and kinda random, for this to happen to a pitcher. Yes? And, nowhere near the money maker part of his body. With 130 innings or so on the books, a well deserved mini vacation in disguise for the 39 year old before entering the home stretch. Plus the timing of it gives Stros the opportunity to get another player(s) playing time and playoff eligible?
Is this a real injury? 99% sure! But the Stros wouldn’t be the first team to go phantom injury to gain an edge. Quite honestly, I feel this happens throughout the league and often. Peace.
Even as a White Sox fan who’s rooting hard for Cease, I want Verlander to come back soon. Not just because I don’t want anyone injured, but I’d rather lose to someone at their best than win and have everyone say for the rest of my life that I should’ve lost. If Cease can cut down on his walks, he’ll win soon enough. If he keeps pitching like he has recently, he might pull off the upset this year, but if he does, I want it to be against a full-strength Verlander. And McClanahan, too.